Allegation of Research Misconduct Policy

Language and Diaspora Transmission (LDT)

Language and Diaspora Transmission (LDT) is uncompromising in its commitment to research integrity and the highest ethical standards of academic publishing. We strictly adhere to the guidelines established by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) in handling any allegations of research misconduct. This policy outlines the procedures for reporting, investigating, and resolving such allegations.

Definition of Research Misconduct

Research misconduct is defined as any serious deviation from accepted practices in proposing, conducting, or reporting research. This includes, but is not limited to:

Plagiarism: Appropriating another person's ideas, processes, results, or words without giving appropriate credit.
Data Fabrication: Making up data or results and recording or reporting them.
Data Falsification: Manipulating research materials, equipment, or processes, or changing/omitting data such that the research is not accurately represented.
Other Misconduct: Including unethical research practices, failure to disclose conflicts of interest, inappropriate authorship attribution, or duplicate/redundant publication.

Reporting Misconduct

Anyone (readers, reviewers, authors, or editors) who suspects research misconduct in a manuscript submitted to or published by LDT is encouraged to report it. Reports should be:

Submitted in writing to the Editor-in-Chief or the Editorial Office via email.
Supported by concrete evidence, detailed explanations, and relevant documentation (e.g., links to original sources, data discrepancies).
Handled with strict confidentiality to protect the identity of the whistleblower, unless disclosure is required by law or institutional policy.

Investigation Process

Upon receiving an allegation, the Editorial Office and Editor-in-Chief will initiate a fair and objective investigation following these steps:

Initial Assessment: The editor will review the allegation to determine its validity and severity. Frivolous or anonymous claims without evidence may be dismissed.
Notification: The corresponding author of the manuscript in question will be notified of the allegation and given a specific timeframe to respond and provide evidence or explanations.
Institutional Involvement: If the allegation is substantial, the journal will contact the authors' affiliated institutions or funding bodies to conduct an independent, formal investigation.
Editorial Decision: Based on the findings of the institutional investigation or the editorial board's own assessment, a final decision will be made regarding the manuscript.

Outcomes and Sanctions

If research misconduct is confirmed, LDT reserves the right to take the following actions:

Immediate rejection of the manuscript if it is still under review.
Publication of an Expression of Concern if the investigation is ongoing but the integrity of the published paper is in doubt.
Retraction of the published article, accompanied by a clear and publicly available retraction notice explaining the reasons.
Notification of the authors' institutions, funding agencies, and relevant regulatory bodies. The offending author(s) may also be banned from submitting to LDT for a specified period or permanently.

Protection of Whistleblowers

LDT strictly prohibits any form of retaliation against individuals who report research misconduct in good faith. The identity of the whistleblower will be kept confidential throughout the investigation process, and the journal will take necessary steps to ensure their professional and personal safety.